Silicosis in a Himalayan village population: role of environmental dust.

Abstract

Endoscopic palliation of tracheobronchial malignancies I read with interest the review by Drs M R Hetzel and S G T Smith (May 1991;46:325-33). I think that cryotherapy is almost unknown in England, and used in only one centre.' There are some errors regarding cryotherapy. The bronchial probes now use nitrous oxide and not liquid nitrogen. The temperature obtained on the tip of the probe reaches-700 (or-80'C) but the tumour or tissues are frozen at-40'C. No cases of perforation have been reported with this technique. Flexible probes were not described by Sanderson;' he used rigid cryosurgical probes (I was the first to use flexible probes in 1985). The authors say that no comparative studies of laser treatment and cryotherapy have been published but there is one study in a French journal,' and others."°T his technique is well known in France and used more widely than laser therapy. There are at the moment 75 cryotherapists and 1500-2000 patients have been treated.

Desert Dust Exposure Is Associated with Increased Risk of Asthma Hospitalization in Children

“…Quartz, an amorphous and crystalline silica, included in dust sand, is known to cause respiratory disease in occupationally exposed people and highly exposed people who live close to deserts (2)(3)(4)(5). It causes inflammatory responses with the release of inflammatory cytokines in the lungs of rats in experimental studies (6)(7)(8).…”

Indoor particle counts during Asian dust events under everyday conditions at an apartment in Japan

“…Asian cities experience yellow air on several days in the spring when the dust is blowing. The dust includes quartz, an amorphous and crystalline silica known to cause respiratory disease in people with occupational exposure or high levels of exposure from living close to deserts [1][2][3][4] and inflammation in the lungs of rats in experimental studies [5][6][7][8]. Further, dust particles contain chemicals derived from air pollutants, such as sulfate (SO 4 2-) and nitrate (NO 3 -), as well as microbial agents, including bacteria, fungi, fungal spores, and viruses, that sometimes survive long-distance transportation [9][10][11].…”

African dust and asthma in the Caribbean: medical and statistical perspectives

“…Desert dust can cause human disease and has been linked with conditions such as silicosis in Himalayan villages (Norboo et al 1991), sand pneumoconiosis in Bedouins ( Bar-Ziv et al 1974), and the desert lung syndrome in persons living and working in desert environments (Al Kassimi et al 1991). More severe manifestations are related to the quantity of dust particles that are inhaled, the size of particles, and the nature of constituent elements and minerals (Inyang and Bae 2006).…”